Exam and Social Anxiety Due to A-Levels

[GoodWithCats]

Is there anything I'm missing to help my DD18 with this? She's having CBT (5 sessions so far), the GP has prescribed anti-anxiety meds, I'm making sure her nutrition is good and encouraging her to exercise and get enough quality sleep etc.

Would you recommend anything else? Has anyone had hypnotherapy for anxiety for example? Will it be too confusing to have CBT and hypnotherapy together?

School have been helpful to an extent but there seems to be a lot of continual pressure on the kids (three sets of exams between last September and this March along with continual testing / data collection in case the A-Levels don't go ahead). For the last couple of weeks her anxiety calmed down considerably but now, with the thought of more exams in March, it's flaring up again.

I've told her repeatedly that her mental health is the most important thing but she's determined to get through these A-Levels.

On another note is anyone else experiencing anything similar with their DC? It seems like an extraordinarily intense year.

Sorry you're going through a stressful time with your DD, OP.

We're just giving this thread a bump in case anyone's around to offer some advice and support.

Your DD is not alone. I know of many who are suffering. At our school all the MH support is massively over-subscribed and now being passed back to GP/community, who are similarly over-whelmed.

If your DD is applying to university, can you or HOY contact them to let them know about extenuating circumstances, although as I've already said, I believe there is an enormous increase in MH related matters for teenagers

Thanks so much to both of you for your kind words and for bumping.

I hadn't thought about contacting universities. She has her heart set on one in particular. They've given her an offer so it's defo worth us speaking to them.

As Queen says, it's an epidemic. Ds is same age and also suffering. I was invited to a workshop recently on how to support, very basic and it sounds like you are getting a lot more professional help, but what shocked me was there were over 100 parents logged on.

DS anxiety is also around 'never having done big exams before' as they missed the GCSEs.

Sorry, nothing helpful there, but I just wanted to say I feel for them.

Thanks for responding. It's horribly good to know it's not just my DD who's going through it. I'll be so pleased when this year's over.